Code of Federal Regulations Title 45. Public Welfare § 45.1150.40 Under what circumstances will the Endowment collect amounts that I owe to the Endowment (or some other Federal agency) by offsetting the debt against payments that the Endowment (or some other Federal agency) owes me?

(a) The regulations in this subpart apply to the collection of any debts you owe to the Endowment, or to any request from another Federal agency that the Endowment collect a debt you owe by offsetting your debt against a payment the Endowment owes you. Administrative offset is authorized under Section 5 of the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966, as amended (31 U.S.C. 3716). The Endowment shall carry out administrative offset in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Claims Collection Standards;  the regulations in this subpart are intended only to supplement the provisions of the Federal Claims Collection Standards.

(b) The Chairperson, after attempting to collect a debt you owe to the Endowment under Section 3(a) of the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966, as amended (31 U.S.C. 3711(a)), may collect the debt by administrative offset, subject to the following:

(c) No collection by administrative offset will be made on any debt that has been outstanding for more than 10 years unless facts material to the Endowment or a federal agency's right to collect the debt were not known, and reasonably could not have been known, by the official or officials responsible for discovering and collecting the debt.

(d) The regulations in this subpart do not apply to: